In a move likely to stoke tension in the region, Israel yesterday gave preliminary approval to a plan to construct 900 new housing units in a suburb of Jerusalem built on occupied Palestinian land.
The decision came in defiance of pressure from the US, which has urged the Israeli government not to expand settlements in the West Bank and Arab East Jerusalem, which have been under Israeli occupation since 1967. Washington is keen for Israel to freeze construction in the settlements as part of a broader deal aimed at restarting peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians.
